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Robinson's helmet typology |
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Page 3 of 9 COOLUS
Coolus 'A'
- Simple hemispherical bowls with a small projecting peak at the back. The lower rim at the front and sides was 'knocked back' to form a thickened lip that did not usually carry on to the edge of the neck guard.
- Some examples have simple lines of punched ornamentation and some have a roped border like the early Montefortino types, though others are plain and unadorned.
- They have a single hole or rivet at the side for attaching the chin strap or tie. Roman 'jockey-cap' helmets always have two, sometimes three, rivets to secure the cheek plates.
- There is no form of knob or plume attachment. In most cases there is a hole in the centre of the neck guard or just above on the occipital region for a carrying ring or a third attachment point for a chin tie.
Coolus 'B'
- Bowl is rather globular with the rim flanged at the bottom and sides, running into the very small neck guard.
- There is no provision for a reinforcing peak.
Coolus 'C'
- The skull is bulbous and low in height.
- The neck guards are small and flat and swelling a little at each side before curling in to join the sides of the bowl.
Coolus 'D'
- Skulls are of moderate height.
- Lower rims are 'knocked back' to a rectangular section.
- Small neck guards have a thickening on the underside edge.
- Applied crest knob can be (a) small, solid conical-headed or (b) slotted to take a crest.
- Reinforcing peaks are of right-angled section.
- [May be contemporary with Montefortino D.]
Coolus 'E'
- Bowl height varies considerably in this group.
- Reinforcing peak is a flat, curved strip of bronze, riveted at each end to the skull and tongued at the centre where it is passed through a slot in the front of the skull and is then bent over.
- Lower rim, although 'knocked back', seldom shows more than a slight projecting lip, which may continue around the upper edge of the neck guard.
- Crest knobs are slotted from front to back.
Coolus 'F'
- Similar to the 'Coolus E', but the neck guard is made broader at the sides where it terminates with a short, angular step instead of curving in to join the lower rim.
Coolus 'G'
- Distinguished by the increased size of the neck guard - almost twice the width of previous designs.
- Reinforcing peaks are flat strips of bronze that vary in thickness.
Coolus 'H'
- The skull is a low hemispherical bowl with a broad flat neck guard the projects at right angles to the sides.
- The peak is of right-angled section and tapers in to the point of attachment at each side.
- The lower rim across the brow is finished with a band of filed moulding (possibly inspired by the applied bronze strip on Imperial Gallic helmets).
Coolus 'I'
- Have a deeper bowl in the occipital area, with very broad neck guards. This results in a 'step-down' at the rear of the helmet.
- There may be a carrying handle on the neck guard.
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